MATCH REPORT: Chesterfield 0-2 Grimsby Town
Michael Jolley’s League Two Mariners secured a potentially lucrative third round tie with a rather comfortable 2-0 victory over non-league strugglers at the Proact Stadium this afternoon.
The two teams entered the fray on a mild, drizzly North Derbyshire afternoon.
The Mariners made one change from the side that thrashed promotion candidates Tranmere 5-2 in midweek with experienced defender Danny Collins replacing Alex Whitmore who dropped to the bench while Shaw, Kiwomya & Evans came in for Maguire, Hines & Rowley for the Spireites following their 1-1 midweek draw with Bromley in the National League that took their winless run in the league to an astonishing 18 games.
The home side grabbed the initiative from the start with winger Kiwomya prominent but the experienced Mariners backline kept them at bay until the non-leaguers almost grabbed the lead on 13 minutes. A clever ball by Chesterfield full-back Jerome Binnam-Williams set Kiwomya clear, the winger made it to the byeline & crossed low but a combination of Mariners keeper McKeown & defenders Davis & Collins foiled striker Tom Denton’s goalbound effort.
The hosts continued to pour forward & midfielder Smith was next to test McKeown from distance but the Mariners keeper collected comfortably. The Mariners weren’t showing much going forward with only a couple of unsuccessful corners to their name but against the run of play, the EFL side grabbed the lead on 36 minutes. A Charles Vernam effort was blocked & from Ben Pringle’s resulting corner Wes Thomas flicked the ball on & Vernam finished easily at the far post. For the rest of the first period Grimsby seemed to gain confidence while their non-league opponents were clearly shell-shocked with the Mariners going into the break with a barely deserved lead.
HALF-TIME: Chesterfield 0 Grimsby Town 1
With manager Martin Allen’s half-time team talk still ringing in their ears Chesterfield started the second half on the front foot but the Mariners defence were dealing well with their efforts until the EFL side had a major scare on the hour when Spireites midfielder Curtis Weston hit an effort from fully 30 yards which looked goal bound but luckily for Grimsby the shot was deflected wide of goal with McKeown beaten. Another Weston effort was driven straight at the Mariners keeper soon after but on 70 minutes the EFL side put the tie to bed with a fine break from homegrown midfielder Harry Clifton. Chesterfield were attacking when Clifton got the ball on halfway & sprinted towards goal. His initial effort was parried by keeper Callum Burton but he was able to net the loose ball to make it 2-0. A raft of substitutions from both sides followed & in truth Grimsby missed a succession of presentable opportunities to add more gloss to the score line.
FULL-TIME: Chesterfield 0 Grimsby 2
Overall it was a comfortable victory for the EFL side despite Chesterfield’s hard working efforts. An enjoyable afternoon tempered with sadness as I had a feeling that I was starting to witness the death of a proud ex-Football League club. Talking with some home fans before & after the game, I got a mixture of hopelessness & apathy from them & I found that desperately sad.
words Ian Bradley, D3D4 roving reporter
I was there yesterday, i feel very sorry for the Chesterfield fans, they were so close to Championship football just a few seasons ago, we ( Grimsby Town) also fell like a stone & suffered 6 miserable years in the Conference league. Chesterfield will recover & get back in the league at some point. The way they played yesterday against us will not get you out of that league, just lobbing aimless balls into the box is not enough, that’s what the bottom teams do & they stay down there, you need to play much faster on the break & use the wings & get bodies in the box & of course you need a regular goal scorer, we had Omar Bogle. Fantastic ground & lovely Town, not all Grimsby fans are horrible, i wish you well & hope things get sorted out for you, your a big club & you have a fantastic ground. Best of Luck. Phil Taylor.